Monday, January 31, 2022

Damsels! Trout Love Them


I absolutely love this video titled "Damsels in Distress!"

The damsel patterns below are all in my fly box! These patterns are all fish catchers! Take a look!


Blue Flash Damsel-Davie McPhail


Blue Flash Damsel-Barry Ord Clarke














 

Wednesday, January 26, 2022

Damsels on Zoom- Monday January 31st at 7 pm MST


On Monday January 31st at 7 pm MST we will be taking a good look at damsel fly patterns. Find some olive marabou, some small copper wire, some opal mylar tinsel, some blue 2 mm foam, grizzly hackle and some blue dubbing! A size 12 curved nymph hook and a Daiichi 1260, 1270 or 1760 or a TMC 200R will do as well although 3906B size 10 will get you by! I will tie up a blue flash damsel but do not worry about chasing the materials for that one.








Marabou Damsel- Randall Kaufman originator


Blue Flash Damsel (Barry Ord Clarke's version)


Parachute Damsel (Charlie Craven)































 

Fly Fishing Casa Blanca in Mexico




FINALLY some of our friends made it to Casa Blanca in Mexico to fly fish for bonefish, permit and tarpon! My buddy Scott caught his first permit ever just 60 minutes after heading out! That is amazing! All these pictures are courtesy of Scott Fink. It sure wets my appetite to get back to the flats in the Caribbean soon!












 

Another Great Blood Worm Pattern from the Vice of Phil Rowley


 


The Fork Tailed Devil balances perfectly and will be a great addition to your still water fly box. So easy to tie too! Take a look!

Thursday, January 20, 2022

Talk and Tie with Phil Rowley and Tim Flagler


 This was one of the best informal "Talk and Tie " sessions I have seen in a long time. If you want to up your fly tying game, get a coffee and take a look. It is well worth it!

Wednesday, January 19, 2022

Tying Parachute Dry Flies on Zoom- Monday January 24th at 7 pm MST

Hi Everyone!

On Monday January 24th at 7 pm MST, we will be tying parachute flies. The tying technique we work on can be applied to any of your favourite dry flies. Parachute flies ride so nicely in the surface film and trout love to devour them.

We will be using a relatively new idea to fasten down our hackle. It is clean and makes your parachute flies look fantastic!

I will be doing my parachutes using size 12 standard dry fly hooks on Monday. I tie parachute flies from size 8 all the way down to size 20.

On Monday, I will be tying a Purple Haze Sparkle Pupa, Parachute Adams and probably a parachute Pale Morning Dun.

Have the following to tie along:

1. Size 12 dry fly hooks (I am using TMC 100)
2. Black 8/0 thread
3. White polypropylene yarn or macrame chord, or calf body hair for the post, I will also be using coloured polypropylene to make a high visibility parachute fly.
4. Brown hackle or grizzly/ or both!
5. Tail material: could be moose/deer; Coq de Leon, tail fibbets, hackle fibers work great as well
6. Body Material: Purple ice dub, adams dubbing (light to dark grey) and pale morning dun dubbing(olive antron) or your favourite dubbing for a mayfly or turkey biots
7. UV resin ( I use Solarez Bone Dry) and UV light










 

Jim McLennan's Latest Book: Trout Tracks



...from Jim McLennan!


"This book is a collection of essays written and published between 2010 and 2021. They’ve been gathered into sections based loosely (very loosely) on topic or subject matter. There is no overriding theme or message here, except perhaps that fly fishing has a way of grabbing people, making them think, making them enjoy, making them appreciate and helping them learn. I hope that will suffice."

The book is scheduled for publication by Rocky Mountain Books in late May, 2022, and will include Lynda's art (that's her work on the cover). 


You can order your copy RIGHT HERE!




 

Tuesday, January 18, 2022

Resin Ants!


I wanted to up my ant game on the water. I made sure I tied up some foam ants but my friend, Steve Andersen in Bend, Oregon suggested I check out his favourite backcountry flying ant pattern that was designed by Harrison Steeves.

All you need is a size 16 dry fly hook, some red and black thread and some black hackle. Take a look. A two minute tie. Your favourite resin will help form the body!







 

Hippie Stompers Are SO Groovy!


Andrew Grillos developed the Hippie Stomper as an attractor dry fly.  You can tie them from size 8 to size 16. By carefully choosing the foam colours, you can imitate a lot that floats on the water of your favourite stream or lake. The name of the fly made me laugh. I am quite sure they will be a winner on several of my favourite haunts during the fly fishing season!  Put on your creative juices hat and design a colour scheme that you like! Take a look at the video below if you have not seen how to tie a Hippie Stomper. THEY ARE FAR OUT BABY!






 

Tie and Talk With Phil Rowley and Tim Flagler On Wednesday Evening at 7:15 MST


 This will be an excellent Talk and Tie Session with two of the best You Tube Fly Tying Instructors. 

You can tune in on Phil's You Tube Channel RIGHT Here!

or go to Phil Rowley Fly Fishing on Face Book!


Thursday, January 13, 2022

Hippie Stompers, Beetles and Ants on Zoom-Monday January 17th at 7 pm

What is a Hippie Stomper? Well it is a very cool foam fly pattern that I am sure you will enjoy tying on Monday January 17th at 7 pm.  It has some gurgler qualities and it looks a bit like a stonefly! We will also tie foam beetles and foam ants. Take a look below for what you need to track down for this tying session!



Hippie Stomper

Hook: 3906B size 8 -12 (your choice)
Thread: colour to match the foam you are using
Tail: Moose or deer hair
Body: Two colours of of foam (tan/yellow; tan/orange, etc)
Underbody: Some flashy tinsel of some sort
Legs: Rubber (your choice)
Wing: White polypropylene, macrame, etc
Hackle: Grizzly


Foam Beetle

Hook: size 14 dry fly
Body: Black 2 mm foam
Underbody: Peacock herl
Legs: either black crystal flash or black rubber legs
Sighter: Bright foam



Foam Ant

Hook: size 14 dry fly
Body: Black 2 mm foam
Underbody: Peacock herl
Wing: White polypropylene, macrame, etc
Legs: Black hackle